~ “Quality questions create a quality life. Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.” ~

– Anthony Robbins

One of the best ways to determine what a reading about is to ask questions. Questions not only stimulate the energies that reveal a life pattern, but also enable us to break out of the habit of blindly making assumptions and taking things for granted. Even what we deem as a ‘silly question’, can end up revealing a whole lot about a card. For example, if the 9 of Cups is the card of Happiness, why (in the RWS deck) is the man sitting alone with his arms folded (a body language cue that he wants to be left alone)?

In this Step, we need to go back to the description of our chosen card, and based on it, ask any 3 open-ended questions. The best part about this is that we don’t really need to give a ‘correct’ answer! Yes, we can make up our own answer to our own self-imposed open-ended question. After all, we do contain the answers to the universes greatest mysteries within ourselves (we just need to search deeper than we think), so surely answering such questions should be a snap for us!

However, while we do this, we might just be reminded of a past event within our own lives. This ‘snapshot’ memory image could posses vital clues that would not only help us understand our chosen card, but Tarot as a whole.

So let’s go back to the description of our chosen card…

6 of Swords - Legacy of the Divine Tarot

Two people are standing on a boat/vessel that appears to be made of wood with intricate carvings. The woman stands in front, wearing sapphire color robes. Her arm is bare, but is adorned with bracelets around her forearm and bicep. She wears a golden tiara, and her brown hair, though thick and long, are loosely tied with what appear to be golden beads.

The other figure wears a dark robe with a hood that covers their face, making it all the more difficult to decipher whether it is a man or a woman. Both it’s hands are on the steering rod, from which a chain dangles. Behind this figure is a golden/yellow light orb that though bright, makes it all the more hard to decipher the figure’s gender.

Above them, three swords dangle, suspended with metallic chains. One is right in front of the woman, and one right behind the second figure. The third being the largest of them, dangles in the middle. All three swords have a circular jewel embedded within, which has the purple-ish color of amethyst. Behind the three swords are two chandeliers which hold candles. Behind the middle sword, a bright white light glows.

In the water below, there are three more swords. The one in the middle is closest to the boat, while the other two are spaced further away. The one on the left of the card seems to have a jewel similar to the ones above (we can’t see clearly with the other two swords because that particular area is covered by the water).

The water below is full of ripples, distorting the reflection of the boat, while the walls of the area they are in seem to have carvings of a similar nature on each and everyone of them. Beyond the boat, there seems to be an archway, but due to the darkness we cannot see what’s on the other side clearly.

*~*

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Going over this description over and over, I can think of more than just 3 open ended questions, but if I begin asking them out loud, this would end up being a massive post, and thus would run the risk of boring you (I refuse to let that happen, I care about you, my readers, with all my heart). So hence, will pick the 3 most ‘interesting’ ones of the lot ;).

QUESTION ONE:

“… her brown hair, though thick and long, are loosely tied with what appear to be golden beads.“

Why are her hair loosely tied? And why with golden beads of all things?

Her hair are loosely tied because if they are tied too tight, it might just make it hard for her to think straight. After all, tying hair up too tight would always lead to massive headaches*, and considering where they are, I’m sure the Princess would prefer it if she could think clearly without a headache. However, considering she is a Princess, she would ensure her hair, though loosely tied, would appear neat and well-groomed. The fact that her hair are thick and long, indicates a healthy body, a tension free mind, and a well-developed crown chakra (seriously, it’s true!). This shows she’s balanced on a body-mind- and soul level (and if you remember in Step 5, the number 6 was a number of ‘Balance and Harmony’ among other things).

The golden beads not only signify her royal heritage, but also her intellectual prowess. Alchemist believed Gold represented the perfection of all matter on any level, including that of the mind, spirit, and soul. Gold is also the most malleable and ductile metal, often made into threads or extremely thin sheets (gold leaf), as well as, intricate ornate jewelry and large bulky slabs and bullion. Thereby symbolizing the incredibly depth, purity, and versatility of the Princess’ mind. gold is a good reflector of electromagnetic radiation such as infrared and visible light as well as radio waves, it is used for the protective coatings on many artificial satellites, in infrared protective faceplates in thermal protection suits and astronauts’ helmets and in electronic warfare planes like the EA-6B Prowler. Thereby indicating that her mind is protected from all outside ‘interference’ and ‘pollutants’, allowing her to remain focused with ‘pure’ intentions.

(* The minute I wrote that, I got a ‘Snapshot’ of when I was about 10. I had really long hair back then – long story – and would often try to braid my hair to resemble my sister. I remember I did so too tight, and thus got the worst headache ever! So horrible, that when I was playing on the swings in the park, I got so giddy, that I fell off my swing and hurt myself horribly. Luckily there was soft sand below the swing, so my fall wasn’t as drastic, but the gashes on my arms and legs were horrible.)

QUESTION TWO:

“Above them, three swords dangle … In the water below, there are three more swords”

What’s the deal with 3 Swords above and 3 Swords below?

Hmmm… Well, this is a bit of a toughie. However, I’m going to go with a bit of a ‘creative’ take on it.

This reminded me of the old saying, “As above so below”. This phrase is often circulated throughout esoteric texts and has been quoted numerous times. The concept was first laid out in The Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus, in the words “That which is Below corresponds to that which is Above, and that which is Above, corresponds to that which is Below, to accomplish the miracles of the One Thing.”

In accordance with the various levels of reality: physical, mental, and spiritual, this relates that what happens on any level happens on every other. So if air represents our ‘thoughts’, while water represents our ‘psyche’; the placement of the swords could perhaps represent the connection between our conscious ‘thinking’ mind and our subconscious mind that’s deep like the ocean.

Now, to get a little more creative – there are 3 swords above and 3 below. Perhaps the 3 of Swords plays an important role. The 3 Swords above could represent the Princess having to deal with numerous issues like heartbreak, betrayal, mourning. And maybe she’s wondering ‘why’ did she have to experience such things. Through her journey, she gets to the psychological root of her issues, and realizes that due to all this conditioning that’s occurred over the years, she’s been inviting all sorts of 3 of Swords like experiences within her life. Thus realizing how the Law of Attraction comes into play*.

(* As I wrote this, I had another ‘Snapshot’ flash before me. Earlier this year, I was totally 3 of Sworded by someone I cared deeply about. So painful the experience was, that I had a major breakdown. It was indeed a dark time within my life. After a few sessions with a spiritual healer and karmic counselor, I not only discovered the psychological and emotional roots of why I invited such an experience within my life, but also discovered the past life connections between us. Doing so gave me a better understanding of the entire situation, and thus helped me move on and heal from the experience.)

QUESTION THREE:

“…boat/vessel that appears to be made of wood…”

Why is the boat/vessel made of wood?

Well, the answer for that comes from Feng Shui. The Wood Element is associated with Spring – The season of new beginnings and renewal. Wood periods are a time for healing, for bestowing favors, for helping others, for beginning projects and time for initial growth both personally and professionally; thus representing the Princess floating away from the ‘winter of her life’ and entering a new phase of her life, filled with a renewed sense of hope. It’s interesting to note that Wood is nourished by Water, but destroyed by Metal (Swords are made of metal), so in a way, this is quite a balancing act of a journey for the Princess.

According to ancient Chinese medicine, Wood rules the Liver, and one of the primary functions of the Liver is ‘detoxification’; thus symbolizing a cleansing process of sorts. According to various schools of holistic healing, the Liver is considered the ‘seat of anger’, and the primary emotion of Wood is anger as well.* Thus showing the importance of having a healthy way of expressing anger. If suppressed for too long within, it turns toxic for our souls. If expressed carelessly, it could lead to disastrous consequences. Similarly, the vessel needs to be navigated with care, else it could strike against a sword, causing it to sink like the Titanic.

(* At this point, I had another ‘Snapshot’ flash. This was about 18 months ago, when I was initiated into Reiki. During my Level II initiation, I was taught about psycho-somatic causes of all dis-eases, as well as, the various connection between the mind, body, and soul. My Reiki Teacher actually used those very words, “Liver is the seat of anger”, and she spoke of how people with dull brittle nails, excessive restlenessness, menstrual/gynecological problems, and blurry vision/eye disorders, etc have weak livers, and thus either suppress their anger or have a vicious temper. A week later, I had a blind date with someone I met from the internet. Over our chats online, he seemed really sweet, funny, and incredibly grounded. And when we met, he seemed ever so mellow. However, while he got up to excuse himself to go to the men’s room, I noticed he had really dull nails. Even though he manicured them regularly, there was a certain dullness to them. When he returned, I noticed his cuticles were nitpicked intensely. He kept on shifting in his seat, unable to really sit still for a minute. My ZiZi-senses (my own spin on Spidey-Senses) were tingling, and not in a good way. Throughout the evening, he remained quite mellow, leaving me to believe I was just imagining things. However, when it came time to pay the bill and leave, he got into an arguement with our waiter over the silliest of issues. I’m not able to recall what it was all about, but it was definitely something trivial. However, he went on and on and on… shouting angrily and belittling the waiter for no legitimate reason. And as he drove me back home, he kept going on and on, ranting and raving about the incident (and yell out a few choice phrases to other motorists). Needless to say, a second date was out of the question).

*~*

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Wow, who knew that just by ‘asking questions’, we could discover so much about a card, and even though it might seem random and out of the blue, the ‘answers’ we receive for our questions might just reveal the answers we’ve been seeking all along!

I hope you all enjoyed this Step. Give it a try sometime. Describe the card as explained in Step 2: Description, and then ask open ended questions. I can guarantee, it will be a fun and revelatory experience!

Love and Blessings

Zorian

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This exercise was taken from Mary K Greer’s fantastic book, 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card. For more information about the exercises and the various ’steps’ click HERE to purchase a copy of this masterpiece that’s a must have for every one ever acquainted with the Tarot.

~“Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility.” ~

— Sigmund Freud

As mentioned in the post, Fucking Courts, court cards are one of the most controversial, as well as, confusing, overwhelming, and overall-stress-inducing modes of a Tarot Deck. Primarily, Court Cards either represent an aspect of us (the seeker) or someone within our lives, particularly someone upon whom we’ve ‘projected’ that part of our personality. However, they can also symbolize timing, qualities to embody, spiritual guides, and even events and situations coming into existence; thus making them all the more complicated to interpret.

The Court of Pentacles tend to be practical, grounded, solid, and weighted in this physical reality. They tend to be oriented towards work, goals, money, and the physical senses (especially touch). These are the sensualists who often like to garden, sculpt, and give and receive massages. These are also the builders and the doers on the planet; these folks often help establish businesses, cooperatives, foundations, and projects. They are loyal, headstrong, and literally down-to-earth people. Their practical nature can sometimes leave them a little too weighted, and they can get stuck in ruts and feel bogged down. They need a little stimulation and spark to get them out of their routines.

The following are a list of keywords for the Court of Pentacles. These keywords are not to be relied on as crutches, but as creative springboards for us to develop our own interpretation and understanding of not just each card, but the Court of Pentacles on its whole. And let’s face it, sometimes relating court cards with Celebrities does help.

~ “To talk well and eloquently is a very great art, but an equally great one is to know the right moment to stop” ~

— Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

As mentioned in the post, Fucking Courts, court cards are one of the most controversial, as well as, confusing, overwhelming, and overall-stress-inducing modes of a Tarot Deck. Primarily, Court Cards either represent an aspect of us (the seeker) or someone within our lives, particularly someone upon whom we’ve ‘projected’ that part of our personality. However, they can also symbolize timing, qualities to embody, spiritual guides, and even events and situations coming into existence; thus making them all the more complicated to interpret.

The Court of Swords are often associated with the mental realm. These are the thinkers, the talkers, and the socialites in our midst. They tend to be more detached and objective in their association with the world and can often seem both friendly and distant. They have a great capacity to draw groups of people together and often tend to know ‘everyone’ due to their love of connection and interaction. However, whenever there is an overemphasis on the thinking and talking function, the Court of Swords find it all the more difficult to reach deeper levels of emotional sensitivity.

The following are a list of keywords for the Court of Swords. These keywords are not to be relied on as crutches, but as creative springboards for us to develop our own interpretation and understanding of not just each card, but the Court of Swords on its whole. And let’s face it, sometimes relating court cards with Celebrities does help.

~ “A world ends when its metaphor has died.” ~

— Archibald MacLeish

According to Dictionary.com, A metaphor is a figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison. It is also applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance. “All the world’s a stage”

In her book, 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card, Mary K Greer states that “Tarot imparts information via symbol and metaphor – the stock-in-trade of a reading. Metaphors express what cannot be told in any other way, prompting pictures that trigger the imagistic unconscious mind and bypass the critical conscious mind. As a basic mechanism for understanding our experience, metaphors convey in very few words the essence of a card meaning by evoking emotions, sensations, and memories.”

In other words, we tend to experience metaphors on a physical, emotional, mental, and sometimes even spiritual level. For example, with a phrase like, “The Boy Next Door”, we imagine a young boy in his late teens to early twenties, with the most dreamiest smile ever. A slight blush appears on our cheeks as our lips curl into a shy yet naughty grin, and for some reason, no matter how old we are, we still feel like a young girl crushing away. However, with a phrase like, “Prima Donna”, immediately roll our eyes as we imagine this beautiful yet over-the-top-drama-queen that believes the world revolves around her, and everything that happens is always all about her.

So in this step, we learn how to access symbolic information embedded in cliches, aphorisms, puns, song lyrics, proverbs, and even movie quotes; for they can evoke personal experiences and trigger remembrances that vary from person to person and change with changing circumstances, but can serve us very well when reading a Tarot Card. For example, “I was your fortress you had to burn” from Madonna’s Power of Goodbye can so be used for “The Tower”. Or the phrase, “Crying over spilled milk” is so very “5 of Cups”.

So without any further delay, let us list as many metaphors we can with our chosen card – The 6 of Swords

How do we use metaphors to understand the card better, and also apply it to our reading? Well, the best example I can cite is my own personal experience with not just the 6 of Swords, but with exploring all the various steps within my journey. As mentioned in Step 1, the card chose me, I didn’t choose the card. So in a way, the message I got from the card was –

“I shall be your guiding light throughout your journey. I shall help you sail through the troubled waters within the labyrinth of your human mind.”

~ “I am tough, ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch. Okay” ~

— Madonna

As mentioned in the post, Fucking Courts, court cards are one of the most controversial, as well as, confusing, overwhelming, and overall-stress-inducing modes of a Tarot Deck. Primarily, Court Cards either represent an aspect of us (the seeker) or someone within our lives, particularly someone upon whom we’ve ‘projected’ that part of our personality. However, they can also symbolize timing, qualities to embody, spiritual guides, and even events and situations coming into existence; thus making them all the more complicated to interpret.

The Court of Wands tend to be robust, creative, expressive and dynamic individuals. There is a spark to these people, and they are often the initiators and the visionaries in our environment. They have an almost childlike desire to be admired and appreciated and may wither if they are not given love and attention. In a way, they channel the heat and essential divine sparks of life, and their prime objective is to direct this energy in creative, and not destructive manners. If the latter, then they end up becoming childish, petulant, and argumentative; leading them to be egotistical, bratty, and excessively domineering.

The following are a list of keywords for the Court of Wands. These keywords are not to be relied on as crutches, but as creative springboards for us to develop our own interpretation and understanding of not just each card, but the Court of Wands on its whole. And let’s face it, sometimes relating court cards with Celebrities does help.

~ “Poetry is the synthesis of hyacinths and biscuits” ~

— Carl Sandburg

This step is to synthesize everything we’ve learned in Steps 5 & 6 – number, suit, element, and mode – into simple statements. In other words, we get to have a lil fun and mix and match the keywords in order to create mini-meanings or aphorisms to help us out in not only understanding our chosen card better, but also apply them when the card appears in our readings, as we seem fit.

The best part about this technique is that not only can it help us whenever we’re having intuitive dry-spells, but it can even help us with cards that have unillustrated minors that make it hard to read with ‘intuitively’, as well as, whenever we need to do a ‘quickie’ reading where we need ‘instant answers’ without being too ‘therapeutic’. For those of you who do the whole ‘psychic fair circuit’, as well as, those of you who read at parties, events, metaphysical stores, salons, etc, where you have to stick to a fixed amount of time per seeker, and wish not to be too drained at the end of the day; this reading technique can prove surprisingly useful.

What’s even more cool about it is that you can create an infinite amount of aphorisms and statements, as you can mix the keywords in any possible combination, as it suits the reading. So you can even create a set of ‘ready-made’ interpretations for your own personal convenience. However, I feel that it’s important that I mention that the cards are incredibly dynamic, and while this is a good step to follow, never ignore your own personal intuitive impulses at the time of a reading!

And with that, let’s see how we can synthesize the various structural aspects of the chosen card – 6 of Swords.

In this exercise, I’m making it like a mathematical formula (6 + Swords =…). 6 being a variable that contains all the keywords associated with 6, including the fact that it’s ruled by Venus; Swords being another variable that contains all the keywords associated with that suit, including the fact that it’s associated with the element of Air. And since it’s belongs to the Minor Arcana, one of the Modes of a Tarot Deck, all the resulting aphorisms are connected to the “what?” in a situation, and the “what action to take?” For more details on these, please check the previous step.

6 of Swords - Legacy of the Divine Tarot

6 of Swords

6 (Hamony) + Swords (Thoughts) = Harmony of Thoughts

~

6 (Balance) + Swords (Mental) = Mental Balance

~

6 (Perfection) + Swords (Planning) = Perfectly laid Plans

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6 (Union) + Sword (Mindset) = Unity of mindsets

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6 (Beauty) + Swords (Mind) = A Beautiful Mind

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6 (Fairness) + Swords (Decision) = A fair decision

(Make your decisions fairly; A decision shall be made that’s fair to everyone)

~

6 (Emotions) + Swords (Detachment) = Emotional Detachment

(In order to move on we need to detach ourselves emotionally from the past)

(Yes, I was once asked on Radio to give a weather forecast. I ‘winged’ it in this manner, and it worked)

~

6 (Vanity) + Swords (Cruel) = Vanity and Cruelty go hand in hand.

(If we think about it, a lot of people who are exceedingly vain have quite a cruel streak (Mirror Mirror on the wall…). And yes, this step can also be used to elaborate the ‘shadow’ aspect of a card)

~

Wow! Just by synthesizing the various structural aspects of the card, we’ve managed to come up with 15 unique aphorisms which we can use with the card! See, just by understanding the various structural aspects of a card, we can learn so much about it, as well as, be able to create our own interpretations, and apply them to a reading where it seems fit. Some of them, I just created on the spot, because they just ‘hit’ me at the moment. That just goes to show how ‘intuitive flashes of inspiration’ can strike us even when doing something as ‘mundane’ as mixing and matching keywords to create aphorisms.

We shall next see how we can use our intuitive abilities and create metaphors for our chosen card in Step 8: Metaphor.

Till then, have a lovely week ahead.

Love and Blessings

Zorian

PS: Hey, be a sport, try this out and see how you can synthesize the various aspects of the 6 of Swords (or whichever card you’re doing your own personal Journey through Mary K. Greer’s 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card), and please share them with us here. I’d so totally love to read them. You could just end up teaching us all something new!

~ “Fucking Courts!” ~

— Moi ^_^

Yes, I still say that whenever too many court cards appear within a reading. Especially whenever I’m just doing a simple no-frills 3 card reading, and two (and sometimes all three of them) are court cards. Earlier, I used to think it’s only me who had trouble reading court cards, but it turns out, virtually everyone I’ve come across (seasoned professionals, novices, and even Tarot Authors) have issues with the courts. So trust, me, you’re not alone in your frustration regarding interpreting court cards. However, if you say you don’t need any help regarding court cards and that they’re a breeze to read through, then you’re either the great grand master of all things Tarot and should have a shrine built in your honor… or, you’re just a cocky liar, so get off your high horse already 😛

Why are the courts so F*d up?

The answer to that comes from how Tarot evolved. You see, earlier on, when virtually every deck was a TDM (Tarot De Marseilles) or a TDM clone, the courts were all of a set role – King, Queen, Knight, and Page. Very simple, very feudalistic. Kings were all matured/married men (though so many married men I’ve come across are anything but mature), Queens were mature/married women (ditto), Knights were single unmarried men (read horny pigs that shag everything that moves – oh don’t gimme that look, where else do you think the whole ‘Knight in shining armor’ fantasy came from), and Pages were either children or young unmarried women (goes to show the pittiful state of a young single girl back in the day. Come to think of it, such a mindset is still followed in many cultures of the world, but let’s get back to the subject). Everything was fine and dandy, as psychology wasn’t yet created, and minors were all unillustrated pips (yes, I know there are exceptions, but work with me here) so courts totally were used to represent people (‘I see a tall dark stranger in your future’).

Then in the 19th century, The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn came into the picture and began messing around with our limited feudalistic courts. By stuffing all their esoterica (that has oft been criticized to begin with) into the Tarot, they began assigning elements to not only the suits of the minors, but also to the ranks of the courts. Queens were water and Pages were earth (trust a bunch of stuffy old men to call earth a ‘step-element’ and assign it to a Page – as an earth sign, I take offense to the degradation of my element). The Knight on his fancy horse was fire (read testostrone fueled) and the Kings were assigned air for their logic and reasoning skills (as if!).

However, while this was assigned, some dude in a tacky traditional robe (yeah, str8 men have no concept of fabric and design) must have gone all, “Hey, shouldn’t fire get a ‘higher’ rank? After all, fire is the primary consort of water, and thus it would be more fitting if the Queens consort was fire instead of air.” And so all the GD honchos decided to ‘promote’ the Knight to King (they actually penciled it in on their existing decks), while the King got ‘demoted’ to Prince or Son. The Queens remained queens, and to create a more balance in the genders, renamed the Pages, Princess or Daughter (woo-hoo, a step in the right direction for women’s lib!).

Not everyone was happy with this. Arthur Edward Waite (who shall now be referred to as Uncle Art for short) and Aleister Crowley (Uncle Al), who went on to create their respective Tarot decks that laid the foundation for the evolution of modern Tarot, had their own take on the courts.

Uncle Art was a stuffy old soul (have you ever read his works? Snoozefest!) and decided to go with the Traditional style of the TDM Courts, and thus reinstating the King and the Knight back in their respective positions, and stripping away the Page off his Princess title.

Uncle Al was a… well, a ‘colorful’ character, and decided to take the GD court model a step further by retaining the Knights original title, and making him the highest station and demoted the King to Prince.

(Dysfunctional) Family Dynamics

In the TDM and RWS (Rider Waite Smith – A Tarot Deck created by Uncle Art and Pamela ‘Pixie’ Coleman Smith) decks, the court ranks are based on the royal households of Europe’s feudal period. The King was the absolute ruler of his domain, which he inherited from his father. His consort was his Queen, who most likely married the dude for political and societal reasons. The Knight is either the king’s military commander or an ambitious young vassal. He could even be the royal heir to the throne and thus proving his prowess through tournaments and battles (and sowing his wild oats into all the young maidens). The Page was either their household servant or foster child, that lived with them and attended their needs (developing a major Cinderella complex while cleaning their ‘royal thrones’ every morning).

In the Thoth Tarot (Uncle Al’s deck which he created with Lady Freida Harris), the Knight and Queen were the primary couple with two children, the Prince and the Princess. Crowley’s family model was part based on pre-christian pagan cultures, and part based on fairytales – Once upon a time, a long long time ago, the world was kinda messed up. Since communities were so far off and isolated, people would end up shagging sheep and/or their cousins to get their kicks. As we all know, children born out of incest and inbreeding just tend to be anything but normal, and when too many of such kind are born, the kingdoms would just dwindle on virtually all levels. The Royal Family was treated like divinity, mainly cause inbreeding never occured, and thus they remained all the more healthier, vigorous, and ‘potent’ than their royal subjects. Thus their vitality were directly linked to the land and their community.

The King was a wise and powerful ruler. However, age caught up on him, and he became infertile. Trying to remain youthful, he still tried to do all sorts of crazy things to prove he was still ‘da man’. In the process of doing so, he ended up throwing out his back, causing him to remain bedridden and unable to really get it up (this is what happens when you decide to pump iron instead of opt for yoga and tai chi). This lead to the land drying up and eventually becoming a wasteland. Upon seeing this happen, big scary monsters began terrorizing the people, as the knew the King was powerless to do anything.

The Queen would sigh and cry, “Oh why is this happening to us? Why oh why oh why?” and she would beg and pray for someone to come along and rescue them. And hopefully be cute enough to marry their daughter who just sits all day in her room singing aimlessly about being ‘awoken’. (Taylor Swift anyone?)

Then one day, a strong handsome and very virile Knight was galloping along, till he heard the most beautiful voice in the world. So captivated by the siren call, that he changed course and began galloping towards the voice. Upon reaching the kingdom, he realized that the voice was coming from the Princesses chambers, and upon gazing at her, he fell in love with her at first sight. But as soon as he saw the state of the land, and the fact that a ravaging monster was breathing fire and stomping around innocent inbred peasants, he boldly went on to slay the beast and save the kingdom. For his courage and strength, he was given the hand of the princess to marry. The Old King and Queen gave up their throne and took to the fancy old folks home in the pre-christian Boca Raton, while the princess went onto becoming the new Queen, with the Knight as her consort. They got it on like a pair of wild monkeys, and gave birth to two children, the Prince and the Princess, and the land was again fertile and abundant. The Prince would eventually be set out to follow daddy’s footsteps to rescue another land in turmoil and rescue it, while the Princess would be groomed to become the future Queen.

And they lived happily ever after.

Oy! And I thought my family was messed up.

That’s all well and nice, but how do I read the effin’ courts?

Well, that’s the tricky part. You see, due to the differences between the RWS, GD, and Thoth systems of court cards, we’re all left confused with the question ‘which one do we follow?’ One way of going about it is to read solely with either a TDM, RWS, or Thoth deck and stick with that system and see how it works for you. That’s all fine and dandy till the point you’re viewing the courts as just ‘people’. However, as Tarot has evolved, we have discovered that beyond mere prediction, Tarot can also be used as a therapeutic tool, enabling us to get a deeper and more profound insight into ourselves and the world around us (and even the universe), and thus, we have come to discover that Court Cards, along with representing other people in our lives, also represent different parts of ourselves. Our appearance can fit in with one card, while our emotional side could fit better with another. Hell, even the way we communicate, make love, achieve a goal, and the various stages of our own lives, can be represented by different court cards. And if that didn’t make matters more complicated, Court Cards can also represent situation (yes, situations) in our lives, where either we have to behave like the court-persona, or the situation itself is a manifestation of that particular court card.

And to make matters worse, different decks offer different perspectives on the courts. Some of them even try to combine the TDM/RWS style with the Thoth systems! And while the GD/Thoth systems have a long list of various esoteric correspondences assigned to each court card, they some how don’t totally fit in well with the TDM/RWS courts, thus sparking public (and private) debate on how to merge the two systems, as well as, how to apply them universally, so that no matter what deck we read with, it all applies therein. And don’t get me started on how all the therapeutic psychological correspondences have been assigned to each court card, that’s a whole different can of worms altogether.

I’ve tried my best to create a set of keywords for the ranks of the courts, so as to share with you my own personal system of handling the courts, as well as, offer another perspective on the Tarot Courts. I am not saying this is the absolute right way! Nor am I saying that I stand by this completely. I’m a human being, I evolve with the times, and always keep an open mind for new theories and practices. For now, this is what works for me, and this is what helps me interpret the damned courts at the end of the day. If it helps you, fabulous! If it confuses you, I sincerely apologize, and if you disagree with my assignations, please feel free to share your thoughts.

But before we get to those, let’s take a brief look at how we can interpret court cards within a reading:-

A person in our life, identified by their physical attributes, profession, role, or even personality type and astrological sign.

An aspect of our own personality, style, attitude, or role we play.

A relationship we have with people within our life.

A spiritual influence at work in our lives.

Events and situations (past, present, and future).

Times or seasons of the year.

Qualities we need to cultivate within ourselves.

How do we know when to interpret a court as one of the above? Well, the answer is simple in theory but complex in application, and I’m sorry, but I’m not able to provide a better answer at this moment – Trust your intuition and go with it.

And with that, I present to you the Keywords for the various ranks of the Tarot Court

And with that, I conclude my introduction to the Tarot Court. I hope you’ve enjoyed the journey so far. I shall be providing keywords for each Suit Family in subsequent postings. Thank you for bearing with my rant 😀

Love and Blessings

Zorian

PS: I wrote this post in the spirit of humor and promoting understanding. I do not wish to offend anyone at all with anything that is written here. There are far too many ‘scholarly’ works upon the Tarot Courts that provide way more in-depth info than I have, and though not all of it would match entirely what I’ve posted here, please understand that this is my understanding of the courts, and how I work with them, and how they seem to work with me.

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